Burner



0d. 19, 1937. METTLER I 2,096,555

BURNER Filed July 9, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 F' l f/vvE/vroe Lee /ettler Patented Oct. 19, 1937 UNITED STATES BURNER Lee B. Mettler,

Application July 9,

1 Claim.

My invention relates to air controllers for fuel burners and an object of my invention is to provide an air controller which is adapted to be used in conjunction with either oil, gas, or pulverized fuel or with combination burners; that is, burners adapted to burn either gas, oil, or pulverized fuel, separate or simultaneously.

Another object is to provide an air controller which functions both as a damper to control the volume of air and as a turbulence inductor to cause a swirling or rotating of the inflowing air stream.

Another object is to provide an air controller which may also be used in conjunction with gas or oil burners of the type having relatively small tubular air intake ducts arranged in batteries, the controller comprising units adapted to be mounted at the intake ends of such air ducts and operated in unison.

Another object is to provide an air controller which is particularly effective with gas burners of the foregoing type in which convergingly directed gas nozzles are positioned within the air ducts in a manner to permit instigation of combustion before the fuel leaves the ducts, the controller incorporating means which causes the air streams to both converge and swirl with the result that the air and fuel are intimately mixed.

Another object is to provide an air controller wherein the proportion of air may be maintained at a minimum without wasting fuel whereby the oxidizing action of the resulting flame is minimized.

Another object is to provide an air controller which may be readily and quickly regulated and is equally operable Whether, in conjunction with a plenum box on forced or induced draft installations or with natural draft installations.

Other objects, advantages, and features of invention may appear from the accompanying drawings, the subjoined detail description, and the appended claim.

'I'he accompanying drawings illustrate my invention in some of the forms I at present deem preferable.

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of a combination gas and oil burner taken on line I-I, of Figs. 3 and 5 with adjacent portions of a furnace or boiler shown fragmentally and showing my air controller in side elevation and arranged in its operating position.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional View taken on line through 2 2, Fig. l showing the burner and air controller in elevation and removed from the furnace or boiler.

Los Angeles, Calif.

1935, Serial N0. 30,483

(Cl. 15S-1.5)

Fig. 3 is an'enlarged rear elevational view of the burner and air controller taken on a plane indicated by line 3 3, Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a side elevational View of the burner and air controller with a corner of the gas mani- 5 fold in section. i

Fig. 5 is top or plan View of the burner and air controller.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the burner with the air controller omitted and taken on irregular line 5 6, Fig. 3.

Fig. 7 is front elevational'view of one of the air distributors as Viewed on line 1 1, Fig. 8 with the supporting bolt shown in section.

Fig. 8 is a longitudinal sectional View of one of the air distributors as viewed on a plane taken on line 88, Fig. 7 and showing the same attached to a modified form of the damper plate.

Figure 9 is a fragmentary front elevational view of the burner and air controller illustrating a modified form of operating means for the controller, particularly suited for natural draft installations or automatic regulation.

Fig. 10 is a plan View of the operating means with adjacent portions of the burner'and air controller shown fragmentally.

The burner with which my air and gas mixing controller is particularly designed for use may comprise a battery of mixing tubes of any suitable number, preferably four that are arranged around a common center. Each mixing tube I is formed from refractory material and is in the form of a substantially square block with a centrally disposed cylindrical port 2 which'flares at its rear or discharge end. The. contiguous corners of the four mixing tubes are notched to define an oil burner opening 3.

At their outer sides the mixing tubes I are covered by a gas manifold 4 having ports 5 therethrough in registry with the ports 2. The registering ports 5 and 2 together form air intake ducts. Lugs 6 extend from the corners of the manifold 1I and fit in corresponding recesses molded in the outer corners of the mixing tubes I. The manifold 4 is hollow, forming gas passages I in and around the several ports 5. At the inner extremity of each port 5 there are provided a plurality of equally spaced gas nozzles 8 adapted to direct converging streams of gas fuel into the ports 2 of the mixing tubes I. At somev convenient point at its outer side the manifold 4 is provided with means for connection to a fuel supply pipe 9. The manifold and its battery of mixing tubes is adapted to be mounted Ywithin an appropriate opening provided in a furnace or boiler wall as shown in Fig. 1.

The manifold 4 is provided with a central opening I separated from the passages 1 and registering with the oil burner opening 3. A tube or pipe II is secured in the opening I0 and extends outwardly from the manifold. The pipe II is adapted to receive a suitable oil burner I2, and when enlarged may be used for passing pulverized fuel therethrough. l

The pipe II also serves as a support for the air controller. My air controller includes a damper structure I3 comprising a central sleeve I4 which is slidably mounted on the pipe I I.

disk shaped damper members I5\of such number to correspond to the number of'air intake ducts with which it is used. Reinforcing bars I6 connect the damper members directly. Each damper member is positioned in concentric relation with an `air intake duct comprising the registering ports 2 and 5.

Each damper member ycarries a centrally disposedair distributor I1 which projects toward the air intakeduct. Each air distributor I1 comprises a hub portion I8 having a central aperture therethrough which receives a bolt I9 for securing the air distributor to the damper member as shown lbest in Fig. 8. The hub I8 increases in diameter from the damper member and is provided at its extended and larger end with a plurality of helically twisted, radiating vanesv or blades 20.

The damper members are approximately equal in diameter tothe air intake ducts so that the air in flowing into the ducts is caused to ow in converging streams which impinge on the vanes or blades and swirl or flow helically through the air intake ducts and mix rapidly and intimately with the convergingstreams of gas from the nozzles 8. The Volume of air is regulated by moving the damper structure forwardly or backwardly on the pipe I I.

vIn Fig. 8 I have shown a modifiedforrn of damper member I5 which includes a raised convex portion I5" that aids or assists the flow of air into the air intake duct when large numbers of air intake ducts are used.

It will be apparent that my air controller may be used in conjunction with a single air intake duct or with any suitable plurality thereof without departing from thespirit of my invention.

Adjustment of the air controller may be made in several ways. In some installations a fplenum box is provided in front of the burner.

` This is in the nature of a partition 2I positioned pipe II which receives the oil burner extends Arms radiate from the sleeve and support at their extremities'.y

Yarm 28.Y The cross arm Y linkmember 21 across the outer side of the .damper structure and terminates in a yoke 29 through the partition and immediately within the partition there is provided a bracket clamp 22 having a laterally extending arm 23 terminating in a loop adapted to receive an operating rod 24. The inner end of the operating rod 24 is secured to the damper structure, While its outer end projects through the partition and is providedrwith a handle 25.

Should natural draft be used, the partition is omitted and a vcontrol means such as illustrated in Figures 9 and 10l maybe used for either manual or automatic operation of the controller. In this construction, one side of the manifold 4 is Yprovided with a bracket 26 which pivotally supports one end of a link member 21 the other end of -which is similarly attached to a cross 28 extends from the which is pivotally secured to the sleeve I4. At its mid portion the cross arm 28 is provided with a suitable lever'arm 3| Which may be attached to an automatic regulating device, not shown, or manually operated. Y

It should be noted, that the inflowing air stream flows around the periphery of each damper and then converges, and the inrush of such converging air then strikes the radiating vanes or blades 20 which deects the air outwardly, diverging and twirling' the same against the inrushing fuel emitted from the orifices 8. As the damper is brought closer to the duct, the convergence and divergence ofthe air stream isV increased with the result that the effective area ofY the corresponding air distributor is increased and the swirling action of the air stream is intensified, whereby irrespective of the gas pressure an operation is maintained. 'I'he arrows a in Figs. 5 and 8 indicate diagrammatically the flow of the air stream around the damper and through the air intake duct.

I claim:

A burner structure comprising, a mixing tube formed of Vrefractory material and provided with a port; a gas manifold provided with a port in registry with the port in the refractory material; the said registering ports forming an air intake duct, a support extending from said gas manifold; an air controller slidably mounted on said support and including a damper member; an air distributor secured at one end to said damper member, and provided at its other end with a plurality of helically twisted radiating vanes; and means connected to move said damper member toward and away from said air'intake duct and to move said Vair distributor into and out of the .port in the gas manifold to control the quantity of air admited to said intake duct.

LEEB.1VIE'I'ILER. 

